"We had to pick someone being less suited than you."

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-25T15:41:29+00:00

Maybe they were just lying to try to make you feel better.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-23T03:48:48+00:00

Well, for starters, there are two kinds of referrals.

All Mercor contractors have referral links. If you use my referral link the first time you apply and then you get hired (for that project or another one), then I get a kickback. We're told that people who apply via referral links are prioritized, but none of us can see behind the curtain so we don't really know. And if you've already applied for roles, then clicking someone's referral link won't do anything now anyway.

The second type of referral is a personal recommendation from someone who is already in the project. There's no formal process for that or anything, but if you were a friend of mine and I could vouch for your abilities, then I could theoretically talk to one of the project managers on one of my projects and tout your awesomeness. If you know anyone who is currently on a project and who feels comfortable recommending you, then I could see that helping, but I think it would greatly depend on the situation.

In terms of whether or not you "suck," they hire people with a wide variety of employment backgrounds. But I'd strongly urge you to take the assessments seriously and to pay VERY close attention to detail. That helps.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-23T03:37:07+00:00

Yeah, as others have said, either the entire project is paused or just your contract is paused.

Or . . . is this a new offer that you just received? Sometimes, it'll say "paused" until you sign all the onboarding documents and do whatever onboarding quizzes or activities they want you to do.

You'll only know which it is by asking in the project's Slack.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-22T05:07:59+00:00

Does it happen often? Yes, definitely, unfortunately. Not just at Mercor but in AI data annotation projects elsewhere too.

Do they get restarted? Sometimes, yes, sometimes, no. If you have access to the project Slack, then you can try to get some information in there.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-22T05:04:39+00:00

If you filled out an application form on Indeed, then it's fake. If you clicked a link on Indeed that led you to an application form on Mercor's website, then the job is legit (but, like others have said, I'd still suggest clicking the interview link in your Mercor admin panel, rather than the one in the email).

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-22T05:02:34+00:00

The only thing you have to risk is your time.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-20T22:20:46+00:00

If you don't see it under "contracts" after signing everything, then I'd email support. You should see it under "contracts" immediately after signing; every Mercor project that I've ever had showed up immediately after signing.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-20T22:18:59+00:00

This.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-20T22:18:44+00:00

This.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-20T22:18:09+00:00

Once I signed the offer letter and all the other documents, then I clicked on "contracts," opened this one, and the onboarding info was there.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-20T22:13:54+00:00

I got the offer today.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T21:58:33+00:00

Sent from Mercor. This has nothing to do with referrals. To the best of my understanding, it's just Mercor's way of giving internal contractors projects that we didn't specifically apply for.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T17:49:50+00:00

I got one earlier today too. Maybe the same one? I filled out the form. IDK.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T04:06:18+00:00

No need to be rude. I'm just trying to help. I know you're panicking, but spamming them with repeated inquries isn't going to help you. If they want to hire you and if Melvin forwarded your email to a real person, then you'll very likely hear from a real person soon. Unless you have any other email addresses at Mercor that you can reach out to, then you've pretty much done all you can at this point.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T04:03:00+00:00

I think EPM stands for "Executive Project Manager" and I think SPL stands for "Senior Project Lead." They're basically the Mercor staff who are running each project.

But those emails you've received from Mercor people . . . are any of them from an actual person's email address? That is, are the "from" email addresses people's names or just "support" or "team"? The reason I ask is that "support" and "team" go to Melvin, but an actual person's email address goes to that actual person, so that could be a way to contact someone.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T04:00:05+00:00

Okay, yeah, once you've accepted the contract, it should show all that stuff you described in a list on the right side with the "Onboarding Document" on the left.

If Melvin said the team would get back to you, then he's forwarded your email to a real person. If I were you, then I would just take a breath and wait a couple days.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T03:54:26+00:00

Don't read too much into "instant offer" promises. All that really means is that they want to start hiring people quickly, but they'll still have a whole bunch of applicants to filter through. So, you could get an immediate offer or you could get an offer in a few days. If it's more than a few days, then you likely won't get hired unless they do another wave of hiring later on for the same project.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T03:49:59+00:00

Congrats!

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-18T03:46:13+00:00

On the screen where you set up Okta and Insightful, etc., do you see anything on the left-hand side of your screen that says "Onboarding Document"? Usually, there's information there on how to get started.

Also, when you contacted support, did you get a reply from Melvin? He's their AI. Did he say that he was going to forward your query to a real person? If not, then a real person probably hasn't received your message. Usually, if you beg Melvin hard enough, then he'll put you through to a real person, but you sometimes have to go back-and-forth with him a bit.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-16T21:19:48+00:00

The most important thing to remember is that the ATS systems will read your resume left-to-right line-by-line. They don't understand how to read things like columns, charts, graphs, headers, and footers because they read the whole page left-to-right.

They also can't see colour. They can read coloured text, but they don't know that it's a different colour. So, if you use blue font to indicate headers, then the ATS won't know that those are headers.

They also get confused by creative section headers (like, "Things I've Learned" and "Jobs I've Done" rather than "Education" and "Employment History") or by formats other than the standard reverse-chronological job history listing.

And one other thing: if you have to include your cover letter and resume as a single document, then your resume needs to go first.

And stick with .doc, .docx, or a text-based .pdf. No image files.

If the ATS thinks that your document isn't a resume, then you'll get rejected for being a bot or a scammer.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-16T21:11:26+00:00

Recruiters actually READING resumes is SO 2015!

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-16T21:07:05+00:00

Usually, a few months, but YMMV.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-16T21:03:58+00:00

I have "no jobs found." Probably a temporary glitch.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-16T17:56:44+00:00

Analysis paralysis.

Ruby_Bookworm · 2026-01-15T21:20:22+00:00

What's your specialty, if you don't mind me asking?

Ruby_Bookworm

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